Session+11+ISA+14

Title: Democratic Decentralisation and Women`s Participation Session Description: The session on Democratic Decentralisation and Women's Participation envisages to discuss the potential for women empowerment by means of democratic decentralisation. Format: Oral Is this an invited session?: N Language: English Research Committee: RC10 Participation, Organizational Democracy and Self-Management (host committee) Abstract id# 43643 Municipals Government and Participation in Cuba: A Critical Review
 * PLEASE NOTE: This is where you will see any abstracts submitted to this session. Abstract information will be listed above the Session people information. If you do not see any abstracts listed, there have been no submissions to this session.**
 * Hans CARRILLO GUACH**, Centro de Pesquisa e Pós-graduação sobre as Américas (CEPPAC), Universidade de Brasilia, Brasilia, Brazil; Estudios Socioculturales y Psicológicos, Universidad de Matanzas, Matanzas, Cuba

Abstract Text: Ante la necesidad de movilizar dinámicas gradualmente participativas en los gobiernos municipales cubanos, sobre la base de una construcción permanente del Socialismo, este material tiene el objetivo de analizar cómo estos gobiernos se configuran de manera participativa, desde una perspectiva estructural, subjetiva y práctica. De manera general, ofrecemos elementos que ayudan a comprender las lógicas que en materia de participación hacen parte de este estrato gubernamental en el país, contribuyendo a repensarlas con vistas a una transformación, por lo menos legislativa, que impulse las dinámicas antes mencionadas. Este análisis, está basado en la aplicación de métodos cualitativos (estudio de caso único, análisis de contenido y entrevista en profundidad y observación no participante), mediante los cuales se pudo concluir que, estructuralmente, los gobiernos de los municipios cubanos se configuran a partir de un enfoque de participación esencialmente pasivo; lo cual, en el caso estudiado, coincide con la dimensión práctica de las formas de gestión gubernamental a nivel local, así como con los componentes subjetivos construidos por un gran número de actores en torno al funcionamiento de estas entidades.

Abstract id# 48772 Institutional and Peoples' Response to Cope with Growing Urban Challenges: A Case of Women's Participation and Leadership in Poverty Alleviation in Chandigarh
 * Manoj Kumar TEOTIA**, Urban Governance and Development Unit, Centre for Research in Rural and Industrial Development, Chandigarh, India

Abstract Text: Chandigarh has distinctly implemented urban poverty alleviation (UPA) scheme called SJSRY unlike other towns in the region. The women as ‘change agents’ are leading various UPA activities in the city. The self help groups have been formed ‘by the women’ and ‘for the women’ who not only catalyze other fellow members but other women in the poor clusters to join the skill formation training programmes for setting up self employment ventures to earn the livelihood and also to strengthen urban community development networks etc. Three major women based activities i.e., ‘Learning on Wheels’, ‘Eco-friendly Handbags manufacturing by HIV+ poor women SHG’ and ‘Women As Change Agent in Building Leadership and bringing change in their Community’ have recently won the prestigious ‘HUDCO Best Practice Award to Improve The Living Environment’. The new pattern of community leadership is emerging among the poor women. There is a positive institutional response to the UPA activities in the city which seems to empower the poor women. The Municipal Corporation has formed a dedicated Cell with adequate staff to implement SJSRY and other UPA schemes. There seems to be democratic strengthening through enhanced participation and leadership of poor women in local decision making in implementing UPA program. They are able to raise and articulate the voice and choice of disadvantaged women in a better way. The local participatory initiatives have multiplier impact on socio-economic conditions of the poor women. There is negligible poverty and better service provisions. The emerging pattern of women participation and leadership in Chandigarh is a positive step towards UPA, inclusive urban society, women empowerment and also coping with growing urban challenges. There are many success stories of emerging trend of women participation and leadership in UPA in Chandigarh which have been documented by the author for the paper.

Abstract id# 66195 “ Women's Cooperatives As a Form of Women's Participation in Economic Activity”
 * Eleni NINA PAZARZI**, Bussiness administration, University of Piraeus, Athens, Greece

Abstract Text: Women’s cooperatives have been during the last 25 years an economic activity which gave women of the rural areas in Greece the opportunity for economic independence, participation in the public sphere and access to a variety of resources. The paper will present the analysis of women cooperatives in Greece. During the period of the recent economic crisis this form of women’s participation in economic life is even more important and may become a motive for counterurbanisation, since it can be a way to diminish unemployment and give opportunities to women to develop their capacities.

Abstract id# 45947 Paper withdrawn Land Transformation and Women's Political Participation in Rural China: Based on Cgss 2005
 * Jing ZHANG**, social science division, Social Science Division,Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Hong Kong

Abstract Text: Existing studies on women’s political participation in rural China have pointed out that women in rural China suffered from a low political participation in village elections, which can be attributed to the influence of Patriarchy values, the virilocal residence mode, restrictions from clans and women’s disadvantaged status in the power structure of village governments. Such researches rarely consider the regional variation of women’s political participation and seldom explain it from the gap by examining the relationship between land conversion and women’s political participation in rural China in the urbanization process since late 1990s, in which massive collective cultivated land transformed to state owned land for non-agriculture use. Based on a national survey (China General Social Survey 2005) and external official statistics, the author finds out the women’s land right, which includes the land per se and the economic interests attached to it, is severely undermined when women’s marriage status change (i.e. married, divorced, widowed). Driven by the economic incentive, women show significantly higher political concerns and higher degree of political participation in village elections in areas with more land transformation; married women are significantly more engaged in the village elections in comparison with the unmarried, divorced and widowed women, after controlling for the individual demographic factors and village contextual factors. Such relationship exists after robustness check. This study may contribute to help understanding China rural women’s empowerment process, as an unintended consequence of urbanization process, and its influence on the village governance in an authoritarian regime.

Abstract id# 48858 Paper withdrawn Local Governance and Women Empowerment: A Case Study of Kerala, India
 * Sunny GEORGE**, Kerala Institute of Local Administration, Kerala Institute of Local Administration (KILA), Kerala, India

Abstract Text: Local Governance and Women Empowerment: A Case Study of Kerala, India Developing a good local governance system is one of the strategies of India for sustainable human development. It is generally believed that interventions for development, particularly for poverty alleviation, are more effective when they are initiated through local governments. The Government of India’s commitment to decentralisation become more explicit with the 73rd (for rural area) and 74th (for urban area) Amendments to the Constitution of India in 1992, making local government institutions constitutionally mandatory.The state governments, therefore, are to take steps to the creation of the Panchayats and Municipalities and to endow them with //“such powers and authority as may be necessary to enable them to function as institutions of self government”//. Women empowerment is an integral part of decentralization; at least one-third of the elected representatives shall be women. In Kerala, the Southernmost state in India, is a leading state in democratic decentralisation and participatory governance. Women empowerment is more advanced in this state than any other states in India. Here fifty per cent of the seats are reserved for women. Ten per cent of the development funds are earmarked for the development projects which directly benefits women beneficiaries. The poverty alleviation programme is structured for women leadership in economic activity. The paper make a critical analysis of the impact of democratic decentralization on women empowerment in Kerala. Apart from analyzing the governance structure and the consequent involvement of women in local governance, the paper attempts to explore the overall impact in empowerment of women as a result of the introduction of the participatory planning in the State. It may be observed that, significant improvement in the position of women in Kerala society is a reality. Abstract id# 49611 Paper withdrawn Towards an Engendered Development PLAN for LOCAL Governments
 * Peter M RAJ**, Local Governance, Kerala Institute of Local Administration(KILA), Thrissur, India

Abstract Text: Kerala, the southernmost Indian province, offers a unique context to women-centric local governance. A province with high rate of social development is successfully demonstrating mainstreaming gender concerns in development plan thereby exposing yet another development model for the world. This has happened because of the 73rd and 74th Amendments to the Indian Constitution which put forward the objective of democratic decentralization by introducing the Local Government Institutions both at rural and urban level. On the basis of the constitutional amendment, the Kerala Panchayat and Municipal Acts were enacted by the Kerala State Assembly in 1994. The strong devolution base of the state in terms of fund, functions and functionaries( 3 Fs) mainstreamed gender concerns through a “women in development approach” integrating women into existing development process, by targeting them to the development process in Kerala. Several local governments are making remarkable progress in implementing effective programmes for women empowerment after conducing systematic studies and analysis. The key result associated with engendered development plan is that several local governments have transformed themselves to be a safe locality for women and children. Women would be able to walk freely any time of the day, live with dignity congenial environment at homes and in the society in general leading to decreased number of atrocities and increased access to opportunities and social space. This involves the formation of various working groups, training programmes, and training for self defense, gender workshops, help desks, crime mapping, and gender analysis of institutions, plans and fund. Attempts are on to make villages, where no one will be a victim to abuse. The present paper will look into the process and various other systems created to make engendered spaces.
 * TOWARDS AN ENGENDERED DEVELOPMENT PLAN FOR LOCAL GOVERNMENTS**

Session Organizer P. P. BALAN Kerala Institute of Local Administration India **Email:** balanpp25@gmail.com -- Will not be published
 * ISACONF Member